Second Mud Run is set for July 19 in Canton

CANTON -- The second Canton Pee-Wee Mud Run is planned for July 19 and will feature a mud pit, walls to scale and a new half-pipe for the adult course.

The event will feature an adult course as well as a children’s course for ages five and up.

“The kids course is 1-mile long featuring eight obstacles including hay bales to jump over, a mud pit, a two-foot wall to climb over and a 50-foot slip-n-slide,” said event organizer Amy Hunt.

The run will take place at 10 a.m. at 533 Plains Rd, which is land owned by Dr. Bryan Francey of Smiles Associates in Canton, Hunt said.

“The land is perfect…it has hills, wet areas and a pasture for parents to stand near so they can watch their kids,” Hunt said.

The adult course is 3-miles long, with the first mile being the kid’s course. The course features 6 to 8 foot walls to scale and a new 10-foot half pipe.

“All of the obstacles are sponsored by local businesses. The half pipe is sponsored by TJ Toyota and Boyden Brooks Body Works,” she said.

The mud run was Hunt’s idea, which she says she came up with while watching a video for a similar race called the Spartan Race.

“My son does duathlons and triathlons and though it would be cool idea,” Hunt said.

She decided it would make a good fundraiser for the Canton Pee Wee Association, for which she is the treasurer.

Half of the proceeds are also donated to the St. Lawrence County Fire Training Facility. The local fire department helps out with the event by pumping more than 20,000 gallons of water to create the mud pit, according to Hunt.

The event wasn't held last year due to flooding. In 2012, nearly 400 participants got dirty while raising $5,500.

The cost is $35 if postmarked by July 1 for adults, $40 the day of the event and $25 for children under age 12.

T-shirts will be available on race day to everyone who pre-registers by July 7, then to all others on a first-come, first-serve basis.